Spooned To Distraction.

I could have a hundred things to work on in the shop, deadlines hanging over my head (self imposed and otherwise) and none of that will matter when I find the right distraction. For the last few weeks it's been spoons.

When I went out to the woods with some friends a couple weekends ago and came back with half a cherry log hewn down for a bench, I brought two quarters of the end of that log about 18" long home as well. I told the guys I was gonna make spoons. 

Then I had an event last weekend I was supposed to demo carving at, but I didn't have the time or space to prep and load my carving set up. So I punted, rived a couple blanks from one of the cherry quarters, and packed what I needed to carve spoons. 

I haven't done a lot of spoon making in the past. One sucess and several failed attempts. But it is a lot of fun in a challenging in a very immediate "workmanship of risk" kind of way, but it's also relaxing and somewhat social way of working.  

When I'm working in my shop, most of the time it's a solitary endeavor. Last night instead of being alone in the shop I sat with my family in the living room, carved on a spoon blank I'd started earlier that day, and watched a movie. 

A little bit revolutionary.

I'm still finding my feet and getting a feel for it. I've joined a couple spoon carving. / green woodworking groups on Facebook to get a feel for how others work and what their stuff looks like. 

This morning I rived a dozen more cherry blanks. I'm going to quickly rough them out and keep them and a couple tools in a box by my chair, in the living room. Now I'll have something to do with my hands in the evening. 

Ratione et Passionis

Oldwolf